Trial by fire: A metaphor for personal or soul refinement. The adept must undergo internal ‘burning’ to reach enlightenment or the philosopher’s stone.

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3. Practical Alchemy:
• Heat source: Crucial for operations like calcination, distillation, or sublimation. These stages use actual fire or controlled heat to alter the substance’s form.
• Three types of fire (symbolic):
• Natural fire – from wood or coal.
• Innate fire – the internal heat of a substance (linked to sulfur or spirit).
• Philosophical fire – a hidden, divine fire within the work (often metaphorical).